PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE General Article WHO IS HAPPY?

A flood of nell ' studies explores people's subjective well-being (SWB). Frequent positive affect, infrequent negative affect, and a global sense of satisfaction with life define high SWB. These studies reveal that happiness and life satisfaction are similarly available to the young and the old, women and men, blacks and whites, the rich and the working-class. Better clues to well-being come from knowing about a person's traits, close relationships, work experiences, culture, and religiosity. We present the elements ofan appraisal-based theory ofhappiness that recognizes the importance of adaptation, cultural world-view, and personal goals. Books, books, and more books have analyzed human misery. During its first century, psychology focused far more on negative emotions, such as depression and anx-iety, than on positive emotions, such as happiness an